The Spread
by zTiamaTz
Summary: When the walkin' dude comes to Sunnydale, the world will kiss it's ass goodbye. Dark fic, C/X
1. Something's in the Air

**The Spread**

zTiamaTz

Disclaimer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, and Angel the Series, along with the characters from their respective shows are owned by Joss Whedon and Mutant Enemy.

Description: When the walkin' dude comes to Sunnydale, the world will kiss it's ass goodbye.

A/N: Further disclaimers appear below.

| | - Demon language translated to English.

{ } - Telepathic messages.

**i!O!i**

**SOMETHING'S IN THE AIR**

**00000**

**-Xylphos Hell Dimension-**

The dark man stood on the edge of a cliff, looking down on the small tribe of demons. He only needed one, but he needed the _right_ one. He had the power to just take whichever one he chose, but that would cause unneeded problems in the future, near and far.

He'd been watching for several hours now, time was nothing to him, but he wasn't above boredom. Finally though, he saw a likely target. It was mating season, and it looked like a young male had yet to be able to perform. That hadn't stopped him from trying to obtain a mate though.

As the male and female demons paired up, back to front respectively, the young Xylphos was chased off by several older males. Ridiculed in front of future, potential mates, and unable to fight back against the larger males, the youngster left destruction in his wake as he stomped out of the small camp.

"I think he'll do _just fine_." The dark man turned, and walked several steps into a crag, and disappeared.

**00000**

After walking a mile or so from where his tribe was camped, the Xylphos made a fire for himself, probably planning to spend the night alone.

"Pathetic." He stood far enough away to stay out of the demon's sense range, but that didn't make him any less disgusted with his attitude.

Usually, he'd just recruit someone to do it for him, but doing that, in a dimension like this, was just a pain in the ass. The worst part, the demon was _boring_. Camping out for the night? What about a mass murder, or at the very least, an honor killing?

The dark man knew he would have to be careful in his approach of the young demon. Once they were on Earth, he would be extremely limited in what he could do until the time came, so he would have to keep this one on his side.

The problem was solved for him though, the large gray demon fell asleep next to his fire. It gave the dark man more then enough opportunity to knock him out, and transport him away.

**00000**

**==Initiative Rear Entrance==**

While he'd initially wanted to just let the Xylphos run loose, the dark man couldn't be sure that he wouldn't find his way home. Plus, plausible deniability was a big thing, he could always blame it on these idiots.

Dumping his load onto the ground, he pounded on the door several times, but received no response. Fed up, he started pressing random buttons on the keypad, that quickly got the base's attention.

The dark man walked into a row of trees, just as several soldiers came out to investigate.

"Holy shit, what is that thing?" One of them exclaimed, as they gathered around the large demon's body.

"How the fuck should I know, Berger?" Another answered. "Go downstairs and get some tranqs, I don't want this thing waking up, while we're dragging it's ass down to a cell."

Ten minutes later, found the dark man grinning. He watched as his chosen patsies took the body of the young Xylphos, just as he'd hoped. "Time to exploit some loopholes."

**i!O!i**

**==Initiative Cell Block==**

Nalueke lay on the floor of his cell, barely able to move. He did not understand what had happened to him, simply that he was trapped, and that _humans_ were somehow responsible.

Suddenly, there was a flash, and human man stood before him. He was dressed in blue, and had long hair. |_Hey there big guy, how's it hanging?_| The man greeted.

The demon glared up at the man, barely able to give a growl in defense. |**_Cowardly human, if I were not in this state, I would eat your genitals._**|

|_That's a nice thought, but I'm here to help._| The human crouched down next to him. |_Besides, if I were human, my tongue would be bleeding after one sentence of your language._|

Nalueke inclined his head, this was true. Humans were indeed fragile, useless creatures. |**_What do you want from me not-human?_**|

The man gave a large grin, and grabbed his clawed hand. |_I told you, I'm here to help._|

There was another flash, and his weakness disappeared. He was about to get up, when the man placed a hand on his scaly, gray chest to stop him.

|_Hold it, they can't see me, but they 'can' see you._|

The gray demon nodded. |**_Why help me not-human? I am not from this dimension._**|

|_Neither am I, the one I'm from, things went just a little bit screwy._| The not-human gave a strange laugh, as he twirled his puny digit around his inferior hearing antennae.

Nalueke growled. |**_Get to the point._**|

|_Whoa there, big guy._| He held up his hands. |_I have, a plan..._|

**i!O!i**

**==Initiative Corridors==**

**::20 Minutes Later::**

"Where is this thing going again?" The young private asked, an M16 slung over his shoulder.

The lab tech next to him gave out a sigh, and shook her head. As she pushed the gurney with the large, gray demon down the corridor, she couldn't wait to get this thing to the dissection theater. "Look kid, I get it, you're new. Just follow behind me, and _don't_ stare at my ass.

Nalueke kept his eyes slitted, as he rode the primitive transport, waiting for the doorway with the symbols the not-human had showed him.

"But I'm supposed to-"

"Listen Private... What's your name again?" The annoyed tech asked.

"Flannery ma'am."

As the two mammals continued to argue, he saw the symbols he was looking for.

**[_Engineering/HVAC_]**

"I'm-" The rest of what she was going to say, was cut off, when the demon's claws entered her neck. Nalueke then yanked downward, effectively gutting her.

Private Flannery fumbled for his M16, but it was too late. Before he could bring it up to fire, the large demon grasped his head in both clawed hands, and then tore it free of his neck.

Klaxons suddenly sounded, and the whole base went on alert. There was no turning back for the Xylphos demon now.

**i!O!i**

Nalueke was aware he had a short amount of time to complete his task. The thought of running came to mind briefly, but he knew he would never make it out of the human's structure. With a shove from his shoulder, the door with the symbols broke open.

{|_Just remember buddy, you'll go down in demon history._|} The not-man's voice went through his head, it was the last bit of encouragement the young demon needed.

Once inside, he threw himself across a table to quickly kill the first human he saw, jamming his fist straight through the human's sternum. As he turned toward the second, he heard a loud bang, and there was a pain in his shoulder.

The woman had some kind of device that shot projectiles at him. He flipped the desk toward her, taking her off her feet. "**_Tkilbl-jum uiq, spntlo._**" Nalueke cursed, as he stalked toward his next victim.

He was shot two more times in the chest, and stomach, as she lay on the floor. He grabbed the human by the ankles, then swung the woman into a nearby console with the symbol 'HVAC', the gray demon continued to slam her down, again and again. Finally, both the console, and the woman's head, were in pieces.

With the humans taken care of, he proceeded to blockade the door with the furnishings that were not held down to the floor. Finished, he dropped to his knees, he would have his vengeance, and the human's useless race would be all but extinct. His name would go on forever, from the lips of breeding females, to their sucklings in many dimensions.

Pounding started at the door, but the young demon was not concerned. With so many objects in their path, the soldiers would waste much time trying to break through. By then, it would be too late.

Then the pain started, not from the wounds of the pathetic human weapon, but the breeding spouts on his back. He roared in victory, as the six of them grew erect from his back. Soon, his spores would spread through the human's structure, and the humans would pass his seed on to the rest.

After a great struggle, the human's made it through his blockade. With their pathetic weapons aimed, they screamed in a tongue that meant nothing to him. He could feel his spouts starting to pulsate, and he laughed.

The pathetic mammals were trying to order him about, but then the tiny black spores shot forth from his back. Each was as small as a Gavrokian fly, with so many packed tightly together though, it was more like a black cloud.

He continued to laugh, as one of the humans screeched like a suckling, into the wall.

"We got a possible bio-attack! Send the fucking scrub teams down here _now_!"

{|_Good job. They could seal themselves in, and stop it here, but they won't do that._|} The man told him in a strange, sing-song voice.

As his spores spread into the ducts, and into the lungs of the men closest to him, they fired. Over one hundred rounds shredded his chest and face. But for Nalueke of Xylphos, he died with a shit-eating grin.

**i!O!i**

As the cloud of spores spread through the air ducts throughout the Initiative complex, it broke apart. The more side vents that were found, the harder they were to see. Soon, they invaded every room without a single, additional alert being raised.

Several soldiers and technicians had heard Corporal Charles' alert, but there were only two people who could initiate the quarantine lock-down. Those two, Doctor Walsh and Doctor Angleman, were unaccounted for, both hidden away in lab 314 with their research on ADAM. This lead to many of the soldiers and other personnel fleeing in a panic.

Through the Lowell fraternity house, the bunker entrance leading to the highway, and even the rear entrance, the people scattered. As they did, they took Nalueke's spores with them, ensuring the deaths of billions.

**i!O!i**

**::30 Minutes Prior::**

|**_What is this 'plan' of yours?_**| The large demon questioned.

|_I'm going to be honest with you, since you seem like the kind of Xylphos demon that likes a straight answer._|

|**_If you do not explain yourself quickly, I will snap your neck._**|

|_I like that, always have a backup plan. I-_| The man was stopped from further comment, when the demon growled once again.

|_Okay, okay, I'll be blunt. You're going to die today._|

Naluëke's arm shot up to grab the man by his throat, but was quickly stopped. Though much larger then the not-human, he could not raise his arm from the floor.

|_You move around too much, and they'll notice._| The man warned him again. |_Just hear me out Nalueke._|

He looked up at the man in surprise. |**_How did you-_**|

|_Know your name?_|

The Xylphos demon simply nodded.

|_I know lots of things, like how to get back at these people for bringing you here._|

As the demon listened, and he became increasingly angry. These _humans_ thought to use him as an experiment? Nalueke knew dying, in order to kill off the stupid mammals was well worth it, but there was a problem. |**_I will not be able to do this for seven moon cycles._**|

|_That's okay my friend, I've got it covered._| He held out his hand to the demon, showing a smooth, black stone on a chain.

He looked at it with caution, unsure of what to make of the stranger's offer.

|_Take it,_| The not-human encouraged. |_It'll allow you to release your spore when you're ready. They'll be infected with it, long before they know anything is even wrong._|

Hesitantly, he reached out his clawed hand, and took the stone. |**_I will do this._**| He stated, as he carefully maneuvered the chain around each of his horns, and then placed the chain around his thick neck.

|**_What is your name, not-human?_**| Nalueke asked as he stared down at the object in his hand. |**_I wish to know, before I exact my revenge._**|

|_My name is Flagg,_| The man told him with a grin. |_Randall Flagg._|

**i!O!i**

**Disclaimer 2: Randall Flagg, and 'The Stand', are owned by Stephen King and ABC.**

A/N 2: I've based the character of Flagg on the TV movie version. I thought that version of him was a lot more interesting then how King had him in his books. He reminds me quite a bit of the Mayor, who, other then the Beast, was my favorite big bad of either show.

**i!O!i**

**END**


	2. Incognito Intervention

**The Spread**

zTiamaTz

A/N: This was going to originally be chapter three, but I wanted to get to the action quicker. What _was_ chapter two, will be shown in flashbacks in future chapters.

**!i!i!**

**INCOGNITO INTERVENTION**

**!i!i!**

**++Xander POV++**

I put another shovel of dirt onto the grave, this was why it was called the Hellmouth. I had to stop again as I coughed up more blood, I knew I didn't have long, but at least the others had a decent burial. After several more shovel-fulls, I patted the dirt flat. Joyce's grave was done.

I looked down the row, to the left, were Giles, Buffy, Willow, Oz, Anya, and Dawnie. This one had taken the longest, it was a lot harder to dig one when you were doing it by yourself, but at least I was finally finished.

I staggered back into Giles apartment. I thought of calling my mom, but I doubted she was still alive. All that alcohol, and the cigarettes would have made whatever it was, kill her off real fast. I wish I could have done more for her though. Dad on the other hand, I hoped that bastard died screaming.

I went to sit down in the easy chair, but I missed, landing on my ass, next to it. I tried to pull myself up, but I just didn't have the energy to do it anymore. On the bright side, at least the others didn't die alone, if nothing else, I could go out knowing that.

As I tried one last time, using the arm of the chair for leverage, the room started spinning. This was it, now that everyone in my life was dead, I didn't see a reason to worry about it any longer. Letting go of the chair, I laid back on the floor. "I'm ready." I declared, and I let the darkness overtake me.

**00000**

**==A Higher Plane==**

The woman in white looked down at the dimension in horror, she'd been so busy trying to stop that damn zombie problem, she hadn't even seen this happen. The woman sighed, she was just spread _way_ too thin.

As she looked down at Xander, dying alone in Giles' living room, she knew she had to to do something. "_Loopholes to exploit, huh?_" When she found this Flagg guy, whoever the heck he was, she was _so_ going to kick his ass.

But right now, she needed to call in a favor. And if they didn't deliver, there wasn't anywhere in the universe she wouldn't find them.

**00000**

In a flash of light, she was down in Giles' apartment. Normally, she'd be a little more careful about the whole thing, but she didn't see the point here. As she looked down at the frail man's unconscious body, so close to death, she wanted to cry.

She picked him up with ease, and placed him onto the couch that had been the deathbed of his, and several others, pseudo-mother.

Xander was jarred awake as his body hit the couch, and he looked up at her in confusion.

"_You're going to be alright Xander._" She told him calmly.

"You a angel, this heaven?" He asked, slurring his words badly.

It broke the woman's heart, to see this brave man in the condition he was in. "_No baby, you're still on earth, there are people out there that are going to need your help._"

He shook his head. "Shoulda got slayer... Buffy sa-save people."

She had no doubt that he'd give up a chance to continue living, if she could bring back the slayer. But she didn't have the power to resurrect a fly, let alone a human being.

Before she could continue, Xander's body was wracked with a coughing fit. She turned him onto his side and smacked his back lightly, a mix of blood and mucus came up, splattering her dress. She watched as it slid off, and onto the floor without leaving a mark.

As it subsided, he grabbed her wrist to get her attention. "Wah- wa-ter... _please_." He begged.

"_I'll be right back, okay?_" The woman asked him.

He nodded, and released her wrist, too weak to do anything more.

The woman went to the kitchen to get water, and she couldn't help the tears that spilled down her cheeks. She knew it would soon change, but seeing this proud man, who would help anyone, reduced to that _shell_ on the couch was just too much, even for her.

As she filled a glass with water, she was startled by a hysterical laugh from the living room. Rushing back, she found Xander reaching toward the ceiling at nothing.

She placed the glass on the floor, and reached down to pull him up to a sitting position so he wouldn't choke. She stopped as he stared straight at her.

"You're..."

She held her breath. With the deal she'd made, no one was supposed to recognize her. If they did, it was entirely possible that the higher-ups would pull the plug on this whole thing. But as she looked down into his sunken eyes, she couldn't lie to him. "_That's right Xander, I'm_-"

Xander gave her a big grin. "Bright lady." He told her hoarsely.

She sighed in relief at that. The woman wasn't used to being this hands-on anymore, and this was the kind of risk that came with doing so. Finally propping the dying man up, she picked up the glass of water.

"_Here,_" She placed the glass against his lips. "_Just take small sips._"

He took several, coughing half of it back up, covering his shirt with red-tinted water.

As she pulled back, she wondered where that stupid white-lighter was. He _owed_ her big time, and if he didn't come through, she was going to hunt him down.

"I'm pie-rat." Xander told her suddenly, breaking her from her thoughts of possible vengeance.

She smiled at this, it was typical Xander. Even in a delusional state, he was still a jokester.

"One eye." He explained with a giggle, holding his hand over-top of his left eye.

Her smile turned to a frown in an instant. She'd seen several Xander's with a missing left eye. Heck, she'd even seen one that had gotten turned into a _slayer_, proper plumbing and all. But how did _this one_ know?

**!i!i!**

Before the woman could get too deep into that, there was a flash, and a figure was thrown into a nearby wall. She immediately went on the offensive, grabbing up a heavy statue from a nearby table.

As the figure, a man, got to his feet, she moved in front of the couch, blocking his path to Xander. "_Who the hell are you?_"

"_Hey, you called in the favor._" The man said as he turned around.

"_Leo?_" She asked, as she finally got a good look at him, dropping the statue to her side.

He tried to slap off the plaster dust from his clothes. "_Were you expecting someone else to show up here?_"

"_I was expecting you to show up, not plant your face into a freaking wall!_"

"_The Elders didn't want me to come here, there was some kind of outside intervention, and here I am._"

She sighed, as she turned back to Xander, pushing a few strands of hair from his face. "_I need you to heal this guy for me, okay?_." It looked like he was once again unconscious, and she figured that was probably a good thing.

"_What's going on here_-"

Leo had to duck, as the statue she'd been holding came flying at his head. "_Are you crazy?_"

"She crazy!" Xander suddenly added, before another series of coughs started.

"_Shh,_" She told him as she took his hand. "_Get some rest Xander, you're going to be fine._"

"_I want to know right now what's going on here, or I walk._" The white-lighter told her firmly.

"_You were about to say my name, if he'd heard it, I could be in deep trouble._"

"_That's not what I was asking about, and you know it._"

"_If you just heal him, I promise I'll answer all of your questions, now please._" She plead, not sure how much time the young man had.

"_No, there's something wrong here, and I want answers._" Leo demanded. "_Let's see, you threatened to make me a eunuch if I didn't show up here. The Elders tried everything they could to stop me. I just got-_"

The bright woman tried to interrupt, but he cut her off. "_I'm not done._" He took a seat in a nearby leather chair, and tried to remember where he'd left off.

"_I just orbed into a wall. It feels like I'm standing in one of the blackest pits of hell, and on top of that, all I can sense around me right now is human suffering and death. Did I miss anything?_"

"_I didn't say I'd make you a whatever that was, I said I'd cut your balls off._"

He shook his head. "_I'm gone._" He started to orb away, when she tackled him to the floor, landing on top of him.

"_I don't think Piper would appreciate this._"

She quickly got off of him, and then helped him to his feet. "_There's a- a man, his name is Randall Flagg._"

The look on his face at the mention of Flagg's name, gave her a bad feeling. "_What?_"

"_I've heard of this guy, he's really bad news. Awhile bak, he wiped out ninety percent of a dimension's population with a flu virus. Then he set himself up as some kind of tin-dictator, with a messiah complex. The only reason he lost then, was because he, and all of his followers got nuked._"

"_He started to do it here too, only he used a demon to infect people._" She said quietly.

"_So why him?_" Leo asked, gesturing toward Xander's form on the couch.

"_He can save a lot of lives,_" The woman smiled down at the dying man. "_That's what he does._"

**!i!i!**

"_This isn't some random guy is it, you knew him._"

She nodded, not wanting to give any information in case Xander was somehow awake. "_He's a good man, he stayed alive long enough to make sure all of his friends didn't die alone. Then he came in here 'to' die alone._"

Leo stared at the ascended woman before him. He had met her on several occasions, and she had been nothing but professional, if not a little self-centered. He could also see she was ready to beg him if necessary, to keep this man alive.

"_Okay, let's help your friend._" He told her with a gentle smile. He owed her after all, she'd looked out for Piper, and her sisters in their dimension, when the Elders had tried to keep him away from them.

He walked over to the couch, and held his hands above the fallen man's dying body. They began to make a golden glow, and he had them hover over Xander's chest. Slowly, the grayish pallor of his skin started to lighten, and the pustules began to disappear.

As the white-lighter finished up, he turned to her. "_He's going to be out of it for a couple of hours, but that's the kind of healing that the body normally does in it's sleep anyway._"

"_Can't you do it now?_" She questioned, as she looked down at the man with concern.

"_He needs the sleep, getting healed that close to death takes a lot out of the body._"

The bright woman suddenly threw her arms around him. "_Thank you 'so' much Leo, you've saved a lot of lives today, I just know it._"

He smiled down at her as she let go. "_Considering what you did for Piper, it's a pleasure._"

"_I just need you to do 'one' more thing for me Leo..._" The bright woman said, a hopeful look on her face.

**!i!i!**

**++Xander POV++**

I woke up and... why did I wake up? I opened my eyes and realized I was still in Giles' apartment. I'd crashed on this couch plenty of times after long research parties, and I'd know that ceiling crack anywhere.

I then realized that not only was I alive, I felt _good_. Like I'd just woken up from a great night's sleep. "What the heck happened?"

"_Somebody upstairs likes you._" A man's voice replied from across the room.

Not recognizing the voice, I jumped up and grabbed a nearby table lamp, ready to take on whoever it was. I saw was a tall brunette man, dressed in business-casual, sitting in Giles' leather chair.

"Who are you?" I asked, holding the lamp like a baseball bat.

The man just sat there, not at all concerned by the threat of my lamp. "_My name is Leo, someone asked me to fill you in on what's going on._"

"And?"

"_What more do you want?_"

"I want to know why I'm still alive."

"_A friend of mine asked me to heal you, they wanted me to stick around and answer a few questions._"

Normally, I'd question the whole 'healing' thing, but I was alive and well. So I went on to the next important question. "Who's the friend?"

"_I'm sorry, but I can't tell you that._"

"Great, another cryptic asshole." I snorted in disgust at that.

The man looked at me sharply. "_I don't 'need' to be here._"

"It would have been nice if you guys decided to show up _before_ I had to bury _everyone_ I care about."

"_Neither of us found out about it until after the fact. When I got here, you already had one foot in death's door, you were maybe half an hour away at most._"

I knew there had to be some truth to what this guy said, I was alive after all. But he'd still told me next to nothing. "What _can_ you tell me?"

"_There's a certain ex of yours in Los Angeles, that's very alone, and very scared right now._"

"Cordy?" I couldn't believe I'd forgotten about her. While we'd more-or-less buried the hatchet after graduation, we were far from close anymore. "Why are you wasting time here, go heal _her_, now!"

Leo shook his head. "There's no need to Xander, she's not sick."

I just stared at him open-mouthed. Cordelia was a smart girl, no doubt about it, but a survivalist, she wasn't. We had taken _every_ precaution possible, and we'd been wiped out... "How?"

"_Ten percent of the world's population is naturally immune to the plague, Miss Chase happens to be one of them._"

"It's great that you want me to save Cordy, but if so many people are immune, couldn't you get someone that wasn't dying, why am I so special?"

"_Let's just say, you come highly recommended._" He told me with a grin. _Now grab some stuff, we've got to get moving._"

**!i!i!**

After quickly packing a bag, I came back downstairs. The guy was standing by Giles' bookcase, reading one of the books. "Let's go." I told him simply before heading out the door.

"_This isn't necessary-_" He started to say, as he followed me out.

"My truck's right there," I told him, cutting him off. "We can talk on the way."

Leo stopped behind me, and put his hand on my shoulder. "_My way is faster._"

Suddenly, a blue and white light surrounded me, just as quickly, it was gone. I turned around, shoving the man back. "What the _fuck_ was that!"

"_Healing isn't the only trick I've got up my sleeve._" The man explained simply. "_I can teleport too._"

I'd trusted the guy, because I had nothing to lose, I should have been dead now, after all. Looking around, I could see we were in a really crappy neighborhood, I could even see several bodies lying out in the open.

"Okay, you can teleport, why are we here?"

"_Your friend Cordelia, is in that building over there._" He pointed to a building marked 302 across the street.

I gave the place a once-over, and could tell instantly that it was a hovel. I got the craziest feeling of Deja vu as I stood there staring at it. Turning back to Leo, I shook my head. "Cordy wouldn't be caught dead in the place, _literally_. What's the deal?"

"_I guess you'll just have to find out for yourself._"

"You're not coming with me?"

"_I have my own responsibilities,_ The older man explained. _I brought you this far, because someone called in a favor._"

"And that's the 'someone' you won't tell me about, right?"

"_If it helps, they don't have a choice in the matter._"

I thought it over, this guy could have taken credit for the whole thing, but didn't. He admitted to healing me, and getting me here _only_ as a favor to someone, nothing more. If he was trying to play me, he could have done a much better job.

"Thank you." I told him simply.

Leo nodded. "_You both have a hard road ahead of you. It's not going to be easy, but from what I've heard about the two of you, you'll find a way to persevere._"

"I hope so."

He held out his hand, and I shook it. "_Just remember, there are people watching out for you._" With that said, he took a step back. "_Good luck._" Then he disappeared in a shower of blue and white orbs.

Shaking my head at the weirdness that was my life, I headed toward building 302, and hoped for the best.

**!i!i!**

**Disclaimer: Charmed, along with it's characters, are owned by Constance M. Burge, Spelling Television, and the WB.**

A/N 2: I never really watched Charmed, the reason I used Leo here, was after seeing how versatile he seemed to be in other fics I've read. I've tried to keep him in character through clips I've seen on YouTube, and from the Charmed wiki. If I still somehow FUBAR'ed the character, please, let me know.

**!i!i!**

**END**


	3. Better or Worse?

**The Spread**

zTiamaTz

:-:-: - Denotes the beginning/end of a flashback.

**!i!i!**

**BETTER OR WORSE?**

**!i!i!**

**++Xander POV++**

I hit my first problem as soon as I got to the building's front door, it was locked, and there was no buzzer in sight. I guessed the neighborhood was so bad, it just wasn't worth it to have one. I thought of yelling Cordelia's name, but I didn't know who else was out there within earshot.

If I could pry back the security bars, I could just smash the glass, unfortunately, I'd somehow forgotten to pack a crowbar. Looking around for _something_, I realized I was an idiot. Every abandoned car in the street, potentially had a lug wrench I could use.

I came back a few minutes later, wrench in hand. I'd found it in an early nineties Dodge Neon that had been in a head-on with a pickup. After a few good yanks, the bars came loose, and I used my new tool to smash the glass.

Although it had been a pain in the ass, I was happy to see that the building was secure, at least to outsiders. Things weren't any prettier inside though, since I could see at least two bodies lying in the darkened hallway.

Looking over the mailboxes, I quickly found Cordelia's apartment number, and was ready to head for the stairs, when I heard it.

"Help me, please..." A hoarse, male voice begged through the door across from me.

**!i!i!**

I looked back and forth between the door and the stairs. I was desperate to get to Cordy, but could I really leave a person begging for help? I had never bothered to ask Leo if I was now immune to the virus, did I really want to risk that?

"Please..." The voice continued to beg.

I thought about it, would Leo, and my unknown benefactor, go through all that trouble, just to leave me open to die from the virus now? It didn't make any sense. My mind made up, I walked up to the door and read the nameplate.

**[_Miguel Umberto, Superintendent_]**

I guessed he was Cordy's landlord. I tried the door, and found it locked as well, yay. "Are you able to open the door sir?" I called out.

"No..."

Trying to pry the door open would take too long, I decided I'd have to kick it in. After leaning the wrench against the wall, and warning the man of what I was doing, I gave the door a hard kick, splintering the frame. Problem was, he had a chain on it as well.

I moved away, putting my back against the opposite wall. Quickly moving forward, I put my shoulder into the door, and it flew open. It didn't take long to find him, sprawled out on his back in the living room.

He was older, probably in his sixties, and dressed in a pair of what looked to be pajama pants. From the stain on the floor beneath him, I guessed he'd been there for awhile.

His skin was pale, and the things, what had Giles called them? Pustules, were spread all over his body. I remembered how painful they were, poor bastard. Crouching down next to him, I took his hand, it was the least, and probably _only_ thing I could really do.

"I'm here with you man, you're not alone." What else could I tell him, 'it's going to be okay'?

He opened his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

"My name is Xander, are you Miguel?"

He simply nodded.

"Can I get you some water?"

"My wife-" He was cut off by a series of nasty coughs, bringing up bloody mucus. "Grand... daughters." He choked out, as the mess dripped from the corner of his mouth, and down his face.

I got a sick feeling, hearing that. "Where?"

He simply pointed toward a short hallway to my left.

As I slipped my hand from his, and stood up facing it, I _knew_ I wasn't going to like what I found.

**!i!i!**

I reached the closest door and opened it, finding purple walls and Barbie's. There was a bunk bed in the corner, both were luckily, empty. Going back into the hall, I opened the next door and found... a bathroom.

The anticipation was killing me. I knew I was going to find something horrible behind one or more of these doors, and I just wanted to get it over with. Coming out of the bathroom, I stared at the last one, at the end of the hall.

There were no giggles, or a soft, older voice reading a story, on the other side of that door. I forced myself, step-by-step, until I stood in front of it. I blew out a breath and opened the door, the smell smacked me in the face.

Laying on the left side of the bed was a plump, older woman. To her right were two little girls, neither were more then eight years old. All three had their hands clasped in an eternal prayer. The other end of the bed was vacant, waiting for the final member of the family.

I practically raced out of that room, and came back to Miguel. He just looked up at me, unable to do much more.

Did he know they were dead? Had he asked for me to check and see if his family was okay? Was he asking me to reunite him with them? Should I lie?

"Do you want some water?" I was such a pussy.

He stared at me for several seconds, before giving another nod.

I moved to the adjoining kitchen and grabbed a glass from the strainer. Turning on the water, I heard the pipes groan and shake for several seconds, before a thick, black liquid started coming out of the faucet. I really should have expected that.

I moved to the refrigerator with apprehension, afraid of what I'd find. To my relief, there wasn't anything rotting in there, at least not yet. Finding a pitcher of kool-aid, I poured him half-a-glass, not wanting to add the indignity of spilling it all over himself.

"I hope you don't mind kool-aid." I called out to him, as I came back, and crouched down, to help him sit up. "Miguel..?"

**!i!i!**

I sat back on my ass, spilling the juice across the floor. Why did I think this was somehow going to end differently then it had the other seven times? Every time one of them had died, I tried to convince myself that things would somehow be different.

I ran my hands through my hair, wondering if I'd just be better off dead. After several minutes of moping, it hit me, I realized I was being an asshole. I'd been given a second chance, while this poor guy died, lying in his own filth.

Standing up, I grabbed the bigger man by his wrists, and dragged him toward the bedroom, determined to make sure he was with his family. After getting him next to the bed, I went back out to the kitchen, and grabbed a couple of trash bags from a cabinet under the sink.

I ripped a hole in the bottom and sides of one, and pulled it over my head and arms like a shirt. The others, I pulled over my arms. Since I still had to lift him into the bed, I didn't want to get anything on me.

After a lot of struggle, Miguel was with his family. I made sure to clasp his hands together as the others were. With that done, I grabbed a blanket from a nearby closet, and covered the four of them with it.

Judging by the crosses and paintings throughout the house, I knew they were a religious family. I wanted to say a prayer, but I didn't know any. I'd been in churches plenty of times, whether for a classmate's funeral, or to grab a bottle-full of old Father O'Malley's holy water. But I'd never really _listened_.

I tossed aside the trash bags, and held my hands together like the family had. I looked up at the ceiling, and just tried not to mess it up...

"God, you're obviously a good ah- person? You've got guys like Leo working for you, so you're doing something right. Just ah- just make sure this family is together, up there with you, they deserve it."

I gave the family one last nod before I headed back to the hallway. After shutting the door behind me, I was about to reach for my wrench when a thought hit me. Clasping my hands once again, I looked up at the ceiling. "And thanks, for giving me a second chance."

After grabbing the wrench, and double-checking the apartment number, I went upstairs to finally find Cordy. I tried not to get angry all over again, we'd beaten back _five_ apocalypses, just for a bunch of government assholes to do this...

**:-:-:**

_Willow, Oz, and me were sitting around Giles' living room, doing research, and listening to his record collection. Oz had put on some Black Sabbath, his favorite song on the album, 'Sabbath Bloody Sabbath' was playing, and I swore I heard Giles sing along to it from the kitchen, before catching himself._

Suddenly, the front door was thrown open, and a blond blur shot into the house. "Giles! Giles!"

Staring at her, I could instantly see this was not the usual 'Ooh, a shiny thing!' Buffy. This was 'freaked out of her mind, the world is going down the toilet' Buffy.

"Really Buffy, is all of this screaming necessary?" Giles asked as he came in from the kitchen, a mug in one hand, towel in the other.

"Yeah Buff, jeez, is the apocalypse coming a little early this year, or what?" I questioned, as I watched her fall back on the couch and try to catch her breath.

For her to be that out of breath, she must have run far and hard. Considering the state she was in, something must have really spooked her bad.

Finally getting it back, she looked up at us. "I just talked to that cute TA from Doctor Walsh's psyche class, Riley. He didn't go into details or anything, but he said there was something seriously wrong on campus, a disease outbreak happened, and I should get out of there right away."

"Are you sure he wasn't trying to pull your leg Buffy?" Willow asked.

"No!" Buffy yelled, before catching herself. "Giles, he was scared, I mean really scared to death. That friend of his Forrest, kept trying to shut him up, and telling him to hurry. It was like, he didn't want Riley to warn me or something."

I looked to see what Willow and Oz thought, but they just sat there. I didn't blame them, this was really weird, even for the Hellmouth.

**:-:-:**

As I got close to her apartment, I found a large corpse, about three feet away from her door. Not unusual, except this one had three bullet holes in his chest and stomach. I could see some of those pustule things on him, so obviously, he would have died anyway.

What worried me though, was that he had a blood-stained knife in his right hand. Something nasty had gone down here, I just hoped Cordy hadn't been caught in the middle of whatever it was.

When I got to her door, my heart sunk. It was closed, but the frame was shattered, like someone had tried to force their way in. I knocked on the door several times, but got no answer.

I decided to open it, and hope for the best. As I did, I felt something wedged against it, then the door stopped. I realized her chain was set. Looking through the opening, I saw a pair of jeans-encased legs, a _body_ was blocking the door. Definitely not of the good.

I knelt down, and pushed against the door, trying to see as much as possible. Just then, three shots went off, going straight through the door over my head, and showering me with wood slivers. "Fuck!"

"I- I've got plenty more in this thing, get out of here!" A familiar, female voice threatened nervously.

I scrambled to the left, getting out of her line of fire. "Cordelia, it's me!"

**!i!i!**

**~~Cordelia POV~~**

I sat in the corner, my knees to my chest, gun in hand. I could hear somebody moving around in the hallway outside my door, why wouldn't they just _go away_?

If they came to the door, I was going to shoot them. All that was left between me and them now, was that dinky chain, and Doyle's body. I wasn't going to let _anybody_ touch me, especially not after he'd died saving me from that guy.

Then the knocking started, I stayed quiet, hoping they'd go somewhere else. If they went somewhere else, I wouldn't have to shoot them. I didn't _want_ to shoot anybody. _Please just go away... Please just go away..._

The door started to open, and they tried to get in, but Doyle's body was stopping them. The the chain got taut, before once again, going slack. _Please just go away..._

Now, I could see the chain straining, it wasn't going to last much longer. I got to my feet as quietly as possible, and aimed the gun at the center of the door like Doyle had told me to.

Getting a good grip with both hands, I let out a breath. It was me or them, and I wasn't going down without a fight. Finally, I pulled the trigger three times, and waited to see what happened.

"Fuck!"

"I- I've got plenty more in this thing, get out of here!" Good one Cordelia, _that_ sounded _really_ threatening.

Keeping the gun pointed at the door, I waited to see what would happen now. I was out of bullets, so if the guy wasn't dying, or scared off, I was in serious trouble.

"Cordelia, it's me!"

No, it _couldn't_ be, but maybe... "Xander?" I asked hopefully, as I tried not to cry.

**!i!i!**

"Yeah Cor, don't shoot!"

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. Great idea, just throw out a name, what are they going to do, say _no_? "Prove it!"

There was silence for about thirty seconds, before he answered back. "Your horse's name was Keanu!"

Oh my God, it was him! It was really _him_! I dropped the gun, and almost ran to the door, but I stopped myself. I didn't want to accidentally step on Doyle's body, he deserved a lot better then that.

I undid the chain, and held the door open as wide as I could. He was just standing there, waiting. A smile on his face, happy to see me, even though I'd just tried to shoot him three freaking times.

He just barely managed to squeeze himself, and then his backpack through, before turning to me. "I'm glad you're okay Cor, I was really worried about you."

Looking at him standing there, it all finally came crashing down on me. I'd been in this place for days, just myself and Doyle's body, waiting for the next creep to show up at the door. And now, Xander had come to my rescue, just like he'd always done.

I threw myself into his arm, and I held onto him for dear life. I buried my face into his chest and I cried, I don't even know how long I cried for. The whole time, he just stood there, rubbing my back and trying to tell me it was okay.

I doubted things would ever be okay again, but at least now, they'd be a little better.

**!i!i!**

**A/N: I am not portraying Buffy as a dumb, gullible blond in this. I just had to cut the flashback off at an odd spot. There will be more on this in later chapters.**

**!i!i!**

**Disclaimer: The song '_Sabbath Bloody Sabbath_' is owned by Black Sabbath, and Warner Brothers Records.**

**!i!i!**

**END**


	4. Bad Intentions

**The Spread**

**zTiamaTz**

**:-:-: - Denotes the beginning/end of a flashback.**

**!i!i!**

**BAD INTENTIONS**

**!i!i!**

**++Xander POV++**

As I held Cordy close to me, I couldn't imagine what she had gone through to be like this. They just didn't make non-slayer women any tougher then her. Right now though, she looked like she'd been through hell.

Her face had patches of dried blood, her clothes were torn and dirty, and it looked like she hadn't slept in days. Looking over her shoulder, I could see the body at the door had been messed up pretty bad.

I couldn't tell who it was though, because there was a sheet covering most of the body. Most of it was red, and I had a bad feeling whoever it was, had met up with the guy with the knife in the hallway.

As Cordelia shuddered against me, I continued to tell her it would be okay. Hell, it couldn't get any worse then it already was. Finally, she was calming down, so I started to lead her to the bed, only to find it caked in dried blood. Instead, I opted for the love seat.

She leaned into me, so I pulled her close, just wanting to do _something_ to make her feel better.

"I'm really sorry I shot at you. I- I thought you were..."

"Don't worry about it," I assured her. "It was really crazy out there, how could you possibly know I was coming?"

She took her head off my shoulder and looked at me. "How _did_ you know find me anyway?"

I quickly told her the strange, almost unbelievable story of what had happened in Sunnydale, and how I had suddenly ended up outside her building.

"I can't believe they're _all_ dead." She whispered.

While I was sure she felt bad about all of them, I think it was Dawn that really got to her. When we were dating, we'd babysat her on more then a few occasions. No question had been too stupid, no game had been too silly.

I'd always thought Dawnie was the sister Cordy never got to have. Seeing her rolling around on the floor, not caring about her clothes, or her hair, was what really made me realize how much I cared about her. That was the _real_ Cordelia.

"And you were dying too?"

"Yeah, from what Leo told me, I was about a half an hour away at most. Honestly, I gave up, I didn't think there was anybody left for me to care about."

"I know how that feels," She indicated the body by the door. "Doyle, with his stupid jokes, and bad pick-up lines... I miss them both so _much_ now."

"Do you want to tell me what happened?" I asked gently.

She shrugged. "Might as well..."

**:-:-:**

**~~Cordelia POV~~**

_Things were going crazy outside, and the news was reporting some kind of disease that was spreading across the country. They were calling it a new strain of Ebola that was completely incurable._

_The hospitals were filled with people, and there were bodies just lying in the streets. I hadn't seen Angel in three days, he'd gone out to try and help people like he always did, and had never come back._

_Doyle had been keeping me company since then, we'd decided to stay at my place, because it was more secure then his, or the office. Right now he was out getting more groceries, and we were going to try and ride this thing out._

_I'd been really nervous about him leaving, worried that he'd get shot, or infected by the virus. After a lot of pleading, he'd finally revealed that he was a half-Brachen demon. He hadn't told me before, because he was afraid I'd reject him._

_He insisted he'd be fine, and that demon's were most-likely immune to the virus. I tried not to be mad at myself, for making him think he had to hide from me. Was that any different from being a racist?_

_I was distracted from watching the news, when I heard a crash outside. Looking out the window, I saw a car and truck had hit each other in front of the building. Both drivers got out, and started fighting each other in the street._

_As I watched them try to kill each other, I heard banging at the door. At first, I thought maybe Doyle had forgotten his key, but the pounding continued. Doyle wouldn't do something like that._

_"Who is it?"_

_"I need help, let me in!" A muffled, male voice screamed through the door._

_"I'm sick, I don't want you to catch it!" I added a couple of coughs for effect._

_"So am I," The pounding turned into thuds, like he was slamming himself against the door. "We'll go out together!"_

_That scared the hell out of me. I looked around for something to use as a weapon, and then I realized the chain wasn't attached. As I went to put it on, the door suddenly flew open, and I saw Christian standing there._

_He was a guy that lived a couple of apartments down from me. He was shorter then me, maybe five-six, and had to weigh about three hundred pounds. Every time I'd seen him, Christian had would ask me out on a date._

_I'd always turned him down, but since I had to live in the same building, I was even nice about it. After several rejections though, he started making lewd comments, whenever we were on the elevator, or passed each other in the hallways._

_"You look pretty good to me baby." He stated, as he stalked into the room._

_I could see those nasty pimple things on his face, I didn't want him anywhere near me. "Get out!"_

_Christian sneered at me. "It's the end of the world, what are ya gonna do bitch, call the cops?"_

**~0~0~**

_I stepped back, looking desperately for anything to use as a weapon. As I grabbed a hold of one of my cheer leading trophy's, he was on me. He ripped at my shirt, manhandling my right breast, as he tried to drag me to the floor._

_I managed to hit him in the back with the trophy two or three times, before he was able to grab my wrist. He slammed it against the wall until I let go, after that, he finally managed to get me onto the floor._

_He pinned me down, but I was able to keep my left hand free. Without thinking, I slapped and scratched at his face, causing the pimple things to burst. As he bellowed in pain, I was being covered in blood and pus._

_I screamed and cursed at him, I'd just been infected, and now he was going to rape me. If he didn't kill me as soon as he was done, I still had an incredibly painful death to look forward to._

_"You bastard!"_

_I heard loud footsteps, and then Christian's weight was off of me. Looking up, I could see Doyle in his demon form. I'd never seen him so angry before, not even when the Raiders hadn't covered the spread._

_I crawled back, as I watched him kick the bigger man several times, before hauling him to his feet with ease. Christian threw a punch, only to pull his fist back screaming. The idiot had impaled his left hand on Doyle's face spikes, cutting it to shreds._

_Doyle lifted the man off his feet and threw him toward the door. The slob almost cleared it, except his left shoulder caught the frame, causing him to land in the doorway._

_"Ya made the worst mistake of your miserable life boyo." He snarled, as he stalked toward Christian._

_"What- what the fuck are you?"_

_Doyle kicked him in the balls, sending him ass over head into the hallway. "I'm a demon from hell, an I've come ta collect."_

_As they continued to scuffle in the hallway, I decided I was going to tell him to stay away. I knew he'd want to help me, but just because he was a half-demon, was no guarantee he couldn't be infected. Why take the chance?_

_I sat there shaking, I was happy that Doyle had stopped him, but I was still going to die. After all the crap I'd survived in Sunnydale, I was going to die because some creep couldn't keep it in is pants._

_All of a sudden, I heard Doyle scream in pain, and then two gunshots go off shortly after. I got up and ran out to the hallway, expecting to find the worst._

**~0~0~**

_"What happened?" I found him sprawled against a wall, his left hand holding his stomach, his right, in his leather jacket._

_"Bastard pulled a knife on me." He grunted._

_I glared over at Christian, who was a few feet away, moaning loudly. I could see two bloody holes in his stomach, and a knife in his right hand._

_Turning back to him, I was scared at the amount of blood that had suddenly appeared since I was distracted. "How bad is it?"_

_"He got me pretty good."_

_"Come on." I told him, as I grabbed his arm to help him up. I could hear screams and other stuff going on somewhere in the building, and I didn't want any others coming after us._

_I finally managed to pull Doyle to his feet, and helped him into my apartment. He sprawled out on my bed, and I pulled his shirt up. There were two stab wounds, one to the lower left of his belly button, and another directly to the left of it. I could also see one in his right thigh, but I wasn't too worried about that._

_After grabbing the small medical kit I kept in my underwear drawer, I swatted the cockroaches aside as I laid it on top._

_"Damn," Doyle groaned. "Here I thought ya were going to get out something sexy for me."_

_I knew he was trying to lighten things up, but I was just too scared to respond. Opening up the small tin, I tried to find something I could use to stop the bleeding. All I could find were those stupid little gauze pads._

_Giving up on it, I went to my lower drawers, and grabbed several t-shirts, and threw them at him. "Start pressing those to your belly, maybe we can get it to stop." What else could I tell him?_

_I climbed onto the bed to help put pressure on the wounds, and that's when I noticed the one on his thigh absolutely gushing blood. "Your thigh..."_

_"Don't worry princess, it didn't hit anything vital."_

_His joke fell flat though, since the blood was soaking the shirts almost as fast as I pressed them down._

_"I- I can't stop the bleeding!"_

_"I believe ya, I'm starting ta feel a bit woozy." He replied weakly._

_"Can't you turn into your demon face, won't that heal you?"_

_He simply shook his head, and pulled a gun from his jacket pocket. "I want'cha ta take this, there's four bullets left. Anybody else comes knockin', shoot for the center, ya can't miss." He gently placed the thing down on the bed beside him._

_"No Doyle, no!" I begged, I'd already lost everything else in my life. He was the one person that was still here for me. "Please..."_

_"I'm sorry princess, ya deserve better then this, always did."_

_I watched as he faded away, helpless to do anything about it. Then suddenly, I grabbed him by the sides of his head and pulled him into the wettest, sloppiest kiss I could. We were both covered in blood and gore, but who cared at that point?_

_As I pulled back, I could see a big smile on his face._

_"I can die a happy man now."_

_All I could do was hold him close, as that very thing happened less then a minute later._

**~0~0~**

_After crying myself out, I just sat there on blood-soaked bed, staring at the gun. Did I really want to wait to die a painful death? Wouldn't it be easier just to aim it at my heart, and pull the trigger?_

_I was broken from my indecision by the sound of moaning from the hallway. At first it didn't click, and then I realized that bastard was still alive. I snatched up the gun and headed for the door, I wasn't going to give that deviant another chance to touch me._

_Opening the door, I found Christian in the same place as I'd seen him before. He was still crying over the well-deserved bullet holes in his stomach._

_"Help..."_

_I glared down at Christian, I had never in my life hated someone as much as I did him at that very moment. After what he had done to myself and Doyle, he had the nerve to beg me for help?_

_"I should let you just lie here and suffer, but you don't deserve a single extra moment on earth. Believe it or not, there is a hell, and I hope you enjoy your spot there." I pointed the gun down at him and he started groaning louder._

_I pulled the trigger, but instead of the loud bang I was expecting, all I got was a click. I looked at the gun, wondering if there was something wrong with it, as he continued to beg for his life on the floor._

_I was sure I'd figured out what was wrong, when I pulled the thing on the rear of the gun back with my thumb. I once again pointed the thing at him, he stared up at me, tears rolling down his bloody face._

_At that moment, I felt nothing but anger. He had tried to rape me, Doyle had died because of him. Pulling the trigger once again, I got my loud bang, and then the gun jumped out of my hands._

_I heard people yelling downstairs, they must have been alerted by the shot. I quickly picked up the gun and returned to my apartment. Anybody else that came after me would get more of the same..._

**:-:-:**

**END**


End file.
